Sectional canoe or the like



Aug. 20, 1946. E. A. LINK SECTIONAL CANOE OR THE LIKE Filed May 19, 1944 2 sheets sheei 1 FIG. IO 44 46d EDWIN A. LINK. INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS FIG.

E. A. LINK v SECTIONAL CANOE 0R THE'LIKE Aug. 20, 1946.

Filed May 19, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 EDWIN A. LINK.

IN VEN TOR.

MW Y

ATTORNEYS.-

vention. In the figures,

Patented Aug. 20, 1946 p I EdwinlA. Link, Binghamton, N; Y4

Application May 19, 1944; Serial No. 536,293

5 Claims.

This invention relates to a sectional boat,

canoe or the like. of the type wherein the main sections of the devicemay be readily taken apart and after being so taken apart may, when desired, be readily..assembleds'iniits usable state,

suitable clamps. beingrprovi'ded toshold the various parts of. the structure in'their proper relative positions. The prime purpose of providing such a deviceuis torender (it when disassembled, more easily h-andled and'transportedto' and from the point of use.

However; this type 1 otboat or" canoe has not become widespread imuse'hitherto because no completely satisfactory means ofrendering the adjacent. sections watertight, when assembled, have been-known to the prior art;

It is a principalobject of myinyenti'on to provide novel means for forming. a. watertight seal between the various. sections of the hull of the 'device when the sections are assembled to form azus-able device.

More particularly, it is an -obj'ect'of myinfvention to provid'ean inflatable gasket which may be placed betweenxithe abutting surfaces of the sections ofthe devicesinsorderthata water- 1 tight seal maybe':'obtained'.;.

It is a furtherobject-of thisinventio-n to provide a plurality of infiatablefigasketswhich may .be' placed between. the abutting-surfaces of the :sections of the device in ordercto secure awa-tertight seal.

Another aim of my invention'yistoxprovide novel clamping means for holding the parts of the device together when inzassembl'edxform'.

Still another object of theinven-tion is to pro- =vide a novel rib construction whereby thev-arious sections of the canoe may be made flat when disassembled.

Other objects of this invention will become apparent as the description proceeds, reference 5 nowbeing made to the accompanying figures which; show a preferredembodimentof the in- Fig; 1 is a plan view of the .device shown in :assembled condition.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of'the canoe, certainparts being cut awayfor. the purpose of illustration.

Fig. 3 is-a view partly in crosssection taken along the line III--III of' Fig. 1, showing in detail one type ofrthe-preferred clamping means. I Fi-g.; 42isa detailed view-of anotherr'of the .formsof clamping means-w-hichJmay-be used with my invention- Fig. .5. is a detailed view I of: another meansz used in: my invention for holdings-the :main: sections I .of the hull as well sas the thwart in proper fposition. Fig. 6 is a vi'ewofione' form of the gasket-which may'be used'topmduce a watertight seal.

- Fig. '7? shows the relative arrangements of the various gaskets whena -..plurality' of inflatable asket are'used..-

Fig-8 is'a perspective view of a section 'offthe device showing the. receiving means for the gasket.

Figs.9, 10,:10A; 1i and: I2iillustrate'a novel frib construction whichi'ormsl a part ofmy' invention. 9

My invention will :b'e il'lustrated when incorporated in a'sectional canoe 'of theftype shown in' Fig. 1 but it should. be ib'orne in mind that it may be used in'othertypes 'of water-going craft. In that figure the longitudinal center line ofthe canoe is designated l 0,-the center line of course dividing the device equally. .Transvers'e of i the center 'lin iare the linesrli, lidzandi I'Gwhi'ch ex -v tend from the portgun-wale-li to' the starboard -gunwal'e H of the canoe.

The longitudinal 'centerline l0 and'transverse lines 12', 14 and I6 di'videthe canoe-into eight major sections designated generally 18,- 20, 22,

24, 26", 28., 3ll and'32, and the canoe is preferably builtiso that eachfloflthese. eight sections may be 'deta'chedifrom the'n'eighboring sections or attached to the. neighboring se'ctions, as the case may be. When detachedflthe various sections may be. nested inthe. usual manner.

The'fore and aft decks are. designated 34 and 36' and they'may bedeta'ch'ably connected to the associated stemand sternxh'ull sections in any conventional manner. A forward seat 38 and a rearward seat 40 are also provided :as is a central thwart 12.- The seats may be detachably: connected to the hull sections in any suitablemanner and the thwart is detachablyi connected to the hull sections in a 'manner which willbehereinafter disclosed.

Each: of the hull sections has a plurality of rigid .ribs' l l which extendftransversely' of 'the .canoe and are'suitably curved. tosproperly shape the canoe. Suitable outside covering material 46 is attached to the ribs, and this covering mate- "rial may be ofany suitable type such'as canvas, plywood orplastic material.

Still referring to. Fig: 1, it will" be seen that each of the *mainzeight. section's'ofthe canoe-has =a longitudii'ial keel piece-l8? or '49;the numbers "48 designating thekeel" pieces ofthe fdunst'arboard sections 18, 22;:26iandx3fl and the: numsbersifl designating. theakeelxpieces: of the four 3 port sections 20, 24, 28 and 32'. The keel piece of each section abuts the keel piece of the transversely adjacent section. Further; each of the main eight sections has a rib 43 at its extreme end or ends which abut another section of the device. It will be seen in Fig. 1 that a plurality of clamps 50 extending transversely on the inside bottom of the canoe are provided to hold the sections of the canoe tightlyagainst the transversely opposite sections. Also, a, plurality of the same types of clamps 50 are provided to hold the various sections tightly against the lon- I and the movement of arm I04 through 180 to the position shown in Fig. 4 pulls keel members gitudinally adjacent sections.

Referring now to Fig. '2, it will be seen that certain of these clamps 50 are provided along the inside of the canoe near the gunwales I5 and I1 to hold the adjacent longitudinal sections together. Also, there is shown in Fig. 2 at the stem a second typ of clamp 54, three in number,

which are used to hold the adjoining transverse sections of the canoe in proper relative positions. Similarly, three of these same type of clamps 54,

although not shown, are correspondingly placed in the stern of the canoe for the same purpose.

Reference is now made to Fig. 3 which shows inv detail the previously-mentioned clamps 50. Shown in Fig. 3 is the watertight covering material 46. and the ribs 44 to which the covering material is attached. Rigidly attached to the upper surface of the ribs 44 are a pair of filler blocks 56 and 58. Block 56 is rigidly affixed to starboard keel, 48 in a suitable manner and the keel 48 is also rigidly affixed to the starboard rib 44. r At thesame time, the port keel 49 is rigidly affixed to .filler block 58 and to the port rib 44. 'A stud plate 60 having a stud 62 rigidly attached thereto-is affixed upon filler block 56 by means of screws 64 and clasp plate 66 is rigidly afiixed V to filler block 58 by means of screws 68. Bracket 10- is rigidly aflixed to plate 65 in a suitable manner'and pivot I2 is provided so that the clasp lever I4 may pivot therearound. 'Clasp I6 is pivotally connected to clasp lever 14' and may encircle stud 62 as shown, stud 62 being grooved for receiving cIasp'IGU When clasp lever "is raised clasp I6 may be disengaged from stud 62,

and when clasp lever I4 i depressed with clasp I6 encircling stud 62, as shownin Fig. 3, it will be understood that keel section 48 will be drawn tightly against the keel section '49. r 2

Still referring to Fig. 3, there is disclosed the outside keel clamp I8 having a hooked end 80 adapted to engage the lip 82 of the keel plate .84. Keel plate I8 is rigidly afiixed by screws (not shown) to the section 22 of the canoe to the right of longitudinal center line I while keel plate 84 issimilarly attached to the section 24 of the canoe, on the other side of the center line. The interlocking keel plates notonly provide a rugged keel for the canoe but when interlocked, as shown in Fig. '3, before the tightening of the clasp 50 the keel plates assure a better fitting between the transversely opposite members of the canoe. Keel plates'I8 and 84 extend substantially the entire length of the canoe and are sectioned in accordance with the transverse'divisions of the canoe. V

Reference. is now made to Fig.4 which shows the type of clamp previously mentioned and des- .fignated in Fig. 2' by 54. As seen, cam hinge bracket 86 is rigidly afiixed to starboard keel section 48 by means of screws 88 and the stud 90 is integral with angle 92 which is suitably rigidly amxed to port keel section 49. Cam support bracket 94 is pivotally mounted upon pin 95 which is held by cam hinge bracket 86 and cam 98 rotatably mounted by means of stud I00 held by flange I02 integralwith bracket 94. Arm I04 is integral with cam 98. When arm I04 is turned 180 from the position shown in Fig. 4, cam 98 becomes disengaged from stud 90 and it will be realized that bracket 94 may be moved to the vertical position whereupon keel members 48 and 49 may be separated. Similarly, with arm I04 in that position, it will be realized that when keel member 48' is placed adjacent member 49, bracket 94 may be moved to the position shown in Fig. 4

'48 and 49 together thus providing a tight fit. This type of clamp designated 54 is used in the stem and stem of the device because at those the thwart 42 to the main hull sections of the canoe and at the same time providing a clamp for holding the longitudinally adjoining sections 22 and 25, on the one hand,.and 24 and 28 on the other, in proper relativ position.

As seen in Fig. '5,=the' gunwale I5 of each sec- '.tion 24 and 28 is shown to comprise an outer member I06 or I06 and an inner member. I08 or I08, the latter numbers designating the part of section 24. Ribs 43 and 44 are fixedly held therebetween by means of screws 45. Plate H0 is rigidly aflixed to inner gunwale I08 of section. 28 by means of screws H2 and stud I I4 is-fixedly'attached to plate IIO. A second plateul I0 is rigidly aflixed by means of screws 2' to the inner 'gunwale member I08 of section 24. Stud H4 is rigidly aflixed to plate 0'.

Angle bracket II6'is provided and thwart 42 is rigidly aflixed to angle bracket I I6 by means' of screws II8 while thwart clamp I20 is pivotally mounted with respect to angle bracket II6' by means of stud I22 which is rigidly affixed to angle bracket II6. A pair of clearance holes (not shown) are provided in angle bracket I I6 to allow the passage therethrough' of grooved: studs H4 and H4 and a 'pair of curved slots l24are provided in clamp I20.

With the just described construction it will-be appreciated that when thwart 42 is detached 'from' the sections 24 and 28 it may be properly positioned with respect to sections 24 and 28 by having clamp I20 clockwise from the position shown in Fig. 5, this positioningof clamp I20 being possible by virtue of the clearance I26 between the end of thwart 42 and. the vertical component of angle bracket H6. Then, by positioning studs IM and H4 with respect to angle bracket I I6 as shown in Fig, 5, the counterclockwise rotation of clamp I20 to'the position shown in Fig. 5 not only draws the longitudinally adjoining sections 24 and 28 together so that they closely abut along the line I4,'but at thesame time, inasmuch as an arrangement like "that shown in Fig. 5 is provided at the port end of thwart 42and. where sections .22 and'26 adjoin,

thwart 42 is positioned by the just'describedarrangement to hold the starboard and port gunwales in their proper relative positions; Also,

sections 22and 26 are pulled together.

genomes .witlr-centralmember .I 28 so thattheentirelength v of member: I 28Las.:-well:as:.of;,the three transverse membersrmayzbe inflated .by :connectingaa suitable pumpwto the valve-J 36.1 The: inflation, of course, expands all of the parts of the gasket. The transverse .members. are spacedinzaccordance with the lengths-f the mainsections *of. the tcanQe; :Reference is now made' to; Fig.2. 8;Whl'0h' is. aperspective .view of a part of .ithessection. 24 of. the canoe. It-wiI-l,beiseenqthatrkeersection '49 has a; longitudinal groove: .I 38 in: the: middle. of the ,inner wall thereof. Furthermore, the rib 43 along t'heurear most end of. section; .24 has agroove .140 "which curvesinaccordance:with:thexshape of rib -43..- It should; be noticed; that. this-ri-b43: is thicker than the: ribs 44-which-are1not adjacent the ends of the sections. Thev port and.:star.board keel sections of. all of theaother. mainparts of the canoe are grooved like theillustrated section: as are -.all of therend ribs 43 of the parts which abut correspondingribs 43 of longitudinally adjacent parts. All. of the end ribs; compare :in thickness with the ends'rib illustratedin. Figs-8. With thi arrangement, rthereforaethe vtree shaped ggasketshown in Fig; 6 maybe fit into: the; grooves ofthevarious.

sections of: the-canoe as .they are assembled, and the previously described. clampingmeans not. only securely 'hold :the, 'various :sections in .place H but also securely position. the tree shaped gasket.

When-finallyaasserrrbled,;-by.attaching a pump-to valve I 36,:the lposition 'oiwhich is rshown in Fig.2, the-.Jgasket; :may be. inflated and'ithe air.v pressure Within the gasket. will causeits .-exterior surface to zpress.tightlyagainstthe insides of the channels fonnedby the previously described grooves. lhe

pressure of the gasket. seals the abutting. surfaces ofthe sections of. the: hull. and keel inv a--Water- .tightfashion. V

Thezgrooves in the keel sections 48- and 49 may bel'Of equalisize, but preferably; as showninEig; 3,

thegroove I38-inrone of the keel sections .may be-larger than the-groove .intheother keel sec- .tion. The. same. oif-center arrangement: may be used'insofar asthe ribs are concerned; Itshould be :noted that. when this. ofi-center arrangement is. used the. larger groove hasa i circumference greater than. half the circumference vof the gasket, and the opening 10f. thesgrooveis, less in width than the. diameter of the. gasket. This oft-center arrangement. has the advantage. that the corresponding part of the gasket may be fit in...the larger-groove where it will remain without attention, and then the adjoining section of the device, transverse or longitudinal, may be more easily placed in relation thereto.

When the oif-center grooves are used all of the keel sections on the same side of the canoe preferably have the larger groove.

Further, the larger grooves in the rib sections should be placed in accordance with the order in which it is desired to assemble the canoe. For example, if it is desired to assemble the canoe from stem to stern, if the larger groove is placed in keel 49 of stem section and in the rib 43 at the rear end of section 20, the gasket may be fitted into the larger grooves in section 20 and then the sections I8 and 24 may be easily fitted with relation to section 20 with much greater ease than if the larger groove were in the forward end rib of section 24. Also, if it is desired to assemble .6 s the canoe :from; stem; to .stern, placingntheilarge groove'in; the rear. ribrofsection l8 isv preferab1e to having .it.inthe rforwardrib-of section. 2.2. It therefore iSiCIQERTthHIt whenzthe off-center grooves for receiyingither gasket are. provided, it is'prefervable to havethe largerigroove's in the same ikeel sectionabtall .of. the parts. and in the rib/at. the end of :the section: toward ithe.unassembled .end of. the canoe.

As also seen in Fig. 3 one of the keel sections maybe provided witha tongue. :I4Zadaptedto fit .into a groove "I43 in: the. other,..this arrangement further facilitating the fittingtogether and'holding in'proper position. ofithe keel sections.

Reference is nowmade to Fig; 7 which shows another form of. gasket. comprising" independent sections [445146, I4B and l'fili each having a valve lfi2icorresponding to valve I35. seen inflFig, '6. With these. independent gaskets, gasketnl 44 may be permanentlyinserted in thelg'rooves whichare provided :zinsectioni I8; gasket 1.46 in the grooves in. section 24,.gasket M8 inthe grooves in section 26 and gasketil50in: the grooves in section 32, Theigrc-oves. in. each of. the sections which :holds the corresponding gasket are preferably off the oif-center'type disclosed-in Fig.3 and described above, iso..that they mayxpermariently holdnthe gasket: therein. 'Theabuttingasurfaces of thesections not'holding thegaskets may be flat, as shown inFig. 4, or grooved, asseenin Fig. 3. 1

Whenth'ese independent gaskets are us-e'd;:they arepreferablyarranged asseenin Fig.7 so thata part'of' one of thegaskets is between. alliofthe longitudinal. andtransverse abutting surfaces of the main cano sections. Also, at the points designated IIl in Fig, '7, the'seal will be produced by the gaskets pressing againstone another. "The use of several ind'ependent..gaskets preferably permanently held inirelation to the various canoe sectionsfurther facilitates assembling the device and has the-added advantage that when disassembled the gaskets. do not require separate care.

Reference isnow made to Figs. 9 and 10 which disclose a. novel rib construction which may be used tofgr'eat advantagein sectional canoes in order that; when disassembled, the various main sections may betfl-attened so that the may be stored in a more compactmanner.

-.As seen in FigsBand 10 the ribs 44a comprisea pluralit of separate pieces I 60 'which extend transversely of the ribs and longitudinallyof the centerline I20 ofthe canoe. Asseen in Fig. 10 each ofthepi'eceslifill is aflixed to a rugged'flexible member 162 by "means of rivets I64. Flexible member I.52:in:turn:is-attached'to flexible coveringmaterial 40a. Whenlflattened. it will be seen a .slightspacezififi isipresentibetween ea-chpiece 4:60. A soltdmember 1:68 is;pr.ovid'ed was. left ofs pieces I in Fig. 10 and a corresponding solid member H0 is provided at the other end of rib 44a, member I'Iil being affixed to keel 49a. Both of these members are aflixed to flexible member I62, also by rivets I64. Further, as seen in Fig. 10A, the tops and bottoms'of pieces I60 are parallel but the sides thereof are cut at a predetermined angle. The bottom corners of the pieces are chamfered, as shown at I6I. When it is desired to assemble the canoe, the rib 44a may be bent into the shape seen in Fig. 9, which shape, it will be recognized, is that of the rib of a conventional canoe. The angular sides of pieces I60 allow the rib 44a to be bent into proper shape, andin so doing the pressure of the sides of th pieces I60 against the sides "flexible 'member' I52' to be 'bent into a smo'oth :curve. 1 Decks, thwart and seats aspreviously described may beiprovided to'hold the gunwales of the canoe together when this type of rib construction is used, and in so doing they cause the pieces I60 to b compressed together to provide a rigid device. It should be noted that the pieces I60 are provided only at the points of the ribs havinga substantial curvature when the ribs are assembled. J

Well known dowel pin and dowel hole arrangements may be used to properly position the main sections of canoe relative to one another, and the clamps designated 50 and 54 described above may be employed to. hold the sections together.

When this type of rib construction is-used a canvas cover (not shown) such as that disclosed .in United States Patent 1,493,918 issued May 13, 1924; may be used on the outside of flexible covthese figures the ribs are designated 44b, and in place of a plurality of independent pieces I60, rib 44b ismade of a rugged flexible material and has a plurality of notches I16 cut therein, shapedas seen in Fig, 12. This construction not only allows thesections to be flattened when disassembled, but may be bent to the shape seenin Fig. llto the desired. rib shape. The flexible ribs 441) are attached to the flexible covering material 46a. The canvas cover illustrated in the previously mentioned United-States patent may also be used with this type of construction, and the gunwales may be held together as pointed out above, thereby producing the necessary rib rigidity.

It will be understood that numerous changes may be made in the arrangement and location .of the parts shown in the preferred embodiment of my invention, and also, that many structural changes may be made without departing from the spirit thereof. The term canoe? in the claims is to be understood to include boats and other watergoing craft.

I claim: 7

1. A sectional canoe comprising a plurality of separable transversely opposite hull sections, meanswithin said hull sections for securing-said transversely opposite hull sections in their proper relative positions when the sections are assembled, and a member. hook-shaped in cross-section and extending substantially the entire lengthof one 'of saidhull sections attached to' the outside: of 'one ofv said hull sections and. 'arrangedto'cooperate with a member hook-shaped in cross-section and extending substantially the entire length of the transversely opposite hull section and attached to the outside of the transversely opposite hull section for forming a keel and at the same time holding said hull sections in their proper relative positions when the sections are assembled. I 1

2. A sectional canoe comprising a plurality of separable hull sections, a plurality of ribs forming a part of certain of said sections, a flexible covering material attached to said ribs, said ribs being made of a rugged flexible material and having a plurality of notches in theupper surfaces thereof.

3'. A sectional canoe comprising a plurality of separable hull sections, a plurality of ribs forming a part of certain of said sections,- said ribs comprising a rugged flexiblemember and a ph rality of independent pieces extending transversely of said member, each of said pieces being attached to said flexible member, the sides of said pieces being cut at an angle to the tops and hottoms of the pieces and the corners of said pieces adjacent said flexible member being chamfered. 4. A sectional canoe comprising a plurality of separable longitudinally adjacent and separable,

transversely opposite hull sections, means for securing said sections together with their edges in abutting relation to form an assembled canoe, a groove in one of each pair of longitudinal and transverse abutting surfaces and an inflatable gasket in each of said grooves, saidgrooves' having an opening less in width' than the diameter of said gasket, each of said longitudinal g'rooves' being in the members upon one side of said'canoe and each of said transverse grooves being in the ends of the sections toward one end of the canoe.

5. A sectional canoe comprising a first and a second pair of separable longitudinally adjacent hull sections, the said second pair being trans versely opposite the said first pair, a readilydisengageable thwart extending transversely of the canoe for connecting the transversely opposite sections, positioning means on each of one pair of longitudinally adjacent sections adapted to cooperate with positioning means on the adjacent end of said thwart, and manually operable clamping means for simultaneously drawing the positioning means on the longitudinally adjacent sections toward one another and fastening the positioning means on the longitudinally adjacent sections relative to the positioning means on said thwart.

EDWIN 'A. LINK. 

